In a year when remote learning became more important than ever, Harrow School wowed judges with its innovative approach to online learning.

The school founded Harrow School Online - a pioneering, full-time, online British-curriculum school - prior to the pandemic, with the aim of helping students access high-quality British education digitally. 

Lead judge Julie Robinson said: “Harrow School Online came of age during the pandemic, demonstrating the power of an online learning platform to support education across the world.

“Its online sixth form inspires through success coaches, mentors, tutors and teachers…an excellent example of the innovative delivery of the British curriculum.”

The school caters for pupils who may need flexibility in their learning - for example, those whose families are relocating or who do not live close to a suitable school.

Students who take part in competitive sports or other commitments can benefit from the flexibility, and it can also help students who find the distractions of the classroom less easy to cope with.

Harrow School Online uses a “flipped” classroom approach, where students work through interactive self-study materials to develop knowledge of a topic, ahead of a lesson in a virtual classroom.

The self-study materials allow students to work through content at their own pace, alongside regular taught lessons to support their learning. Lessons are data driven, focusing on areas of challenge highlighted from self-study, and they include interactive discussion and group work.

Alongside the academic programme, students can take part in extracurricular clubs and societies. An elective programme offers them the chance to study subjects from quantum physics to investment.

Students can access a skills and mindset course to develop their resilience and self-knowledge, and they have fortnightly individual meetings with a success coach to help them explore their goals for the future.